South African diplomats abroad, though many of them are good at doing their job, are constantly seeing their efforts undermined by colleagues who are alleged criminals and cadres making exorbitant demands who never think about doing the job they were put there to do, as repeated and urgent queries by South Africans in different countries […]

A young South African expat living in Los Angeles, California, has written and produced a song with a voice that will tear at your heart and lyrics that will stir your soul, set to a backdrop of visuals highlighting the spectacular, heartbreaking beauty of South Africa. Edward Smith – whose real name is Dewald Smit […]

South African student Talia Smith, who is currently studying at New York University (NYU) in the USA, has won GOLD in the prestigious 2020 Student Academy Awards for her poignant short film ‘Umama’, based a true life account of her ‘domestic worker’. Talia received the news of her incredible achievement from none other than legendary […]

The DA Abroad UK and SA People invite you to the UK briefing and Q&A on the State of Home Affairs and what is happening with Passports and Document applications from South African Consulates in Foreign countries. Thousands of South Africans have been affected by inexcusable delays in getting passports and other documents, some in […]

Almost exactly eight years ago, I found myself stalled on the steep slopes of Mount Kilimanjaro for our group’s final ascent to the highest point on the African continent, writes Sine Thieme. It was the darkest of nights, my hands and feet were frozen solid, and I could hardly breathe. I was sure I couldn’t […]

A polymerase chain reaction (PCR) test certificate not older than 72 hours and travel insurance are just some of the requirements for travellers to South Africa upon arrival on the country’s shores. On Friday, Transport Minister Fikile Mbalula provided details on the requirements for travellers following the reopening of borders to international travellers with effect […]

While travellers from all African countries are allowed in and out of SA, visitors from the countries listed below will not yet be allowed permission to travel to South Africa… but this will be revised in a couple of weeks’ time. UPDATE 11 November 2020 : ALL countries are now allowed to visit South Africa. […]

Here’s the latest update from Allemansdrift B (in Mpumalanga, South Africa) where over 600 families were facing starvation until the kind intervention of strangers on three continents who have bandied together to bring food, hope and now water to the local residents. It started in South Africa with retired housekeeper Lydia Mashaba (nearly 70) who […]

A South African expat, living in Australia, has spoken this week about how shocked she was at 51 to discover she was not only donor conceived, but that her mom’s gynaecologist (who was also her Godfather) was actually the donor and therefore her biological father. In an interview with SBS in Australia, Fiona Darroch reveals […]

SAPeople editor Jenni Baxter sat down with Adrian Roos MP (DA Shadow Deputy Minister of Home Affairs) and Justin Adams (DA Abroad UK and Europe Chairperson) to discuss the critical situation SA citizens abroad are facing in obtaining their South African passports from Home Affairs and the SA embassies. To assist South Africans abroad the […]

While President Cyril Ramaphosa has urged South Africans to proudly celebrate Heritage Day – on Thursday 24 September – by taking on the Jerusalema Dance Challenge, SA will actually not be the first country to use the gospel hit song for national celebrations (watch video below)… In Papua New Guinea, which marked its 45th Independence […]

SAPeople has collaborated with the Democratic Alliance (DA) to petition South Africa’s Home Affairs Minister to resolve the passport renewal application crisis that is currently brewing abroad. SAPeople is inundated daily with cries for help from South Africans abroad who are unable to contact their own Embassies, and whose passports are expiring – putting their […]

A video filmed in the UK has gone viral on Twitter, showing a man with what appears to be a towel wrapped around his waist, on a construction site, yelling at a white-skinned South African (something he mentions) who is not in view. It appears that the South African may have been the foreman on […]

South African citizens in the UK, with passports that are expiring, have inundated SAPeople with desperate messages after saying they have been unable to get hold of anybody at the SA Embassy in London for months. Phones have gone unanswered. Offices have been closed. And since around 12 August, the website no longer exists. We […]

A lekker new South African restaurant in Bangkok, Thailand, has been opened “in loving memory of our old President Mr Mandela”. The fast food restaurant – Madibaz – was launched on Nelson Mandela’s birthday, 18 July, and is aptly called Madibaz! The South African Ambassador in Thailand, Geoff Doidge, performed the honours to officially open […]

Naked Wines has launched an exclusive case to raise over £225,000 to support  South African winemakers affected by the strict ban on domestic alcohol sales. The online wine retailer launched the online crowdfunding event this week – to raise funds for South African winemakers impacted by Covid restrictions in the country The South African wine […]

My name is Jayne Fraser*, and I’m reaching out to SAPeople readers as I am facing a crossroads in my life. I live in Cape Town with my husband and younger daughter, Suzi. Suzi graduated last year and is concentrating on her career in the arts. My eldest daughter, Marianne lives in the city where […]

The Minister of Home Affairs, Aaron Motsoaledi, recently announced a further extension of visas for foreign nationals in South Africa. However, in the words of the Democratic Alliance (DA), he has “bizarrely refused” to make any provision for South Africans abroad whose passports will expire as a result of the extended lockdown. The DA is […]

A South African expat in Canada, Dr Walter Reynolds (45), was tragically attacked and killed at his medical clinic in the city of Red Deer in Alberta, Canada on Monday morning. The region is popular with SA expats, sitting halfway between Calgary and Edmonton. There has been an outpouring of love, grief and donations from […]

Birthday wishes have poured in for South African expat and Oscar-winning actress Charlize Theron. Her African Outreach Project (CTAOP) said: “As we continue to push forward through these challenging times, there is NO ONE we’d rather have leading our tribe. Your sharp wit and sense of humor always keeps us on our toes. Your integrity […]

A beautiful BnB in Spain – Almijara Residence – which is owned by South African expats Paul Tilly and Maurice Jonker, has been voted the fifth best Bnb in the whole of the European country. A delighted Paul, who grew up in Zimbabwe, announced the news on social media today, saying: “As years go, 2020 […]

Many South Africans living abroad are losing the right to work, receive healthcare and remain legally resident in foreign countries because the Department of Home Affairs (DHA) has been unable to process their passports and other crucial documents in a timely manner, says Democratic Alliance (DA) Abroad Leader, Dr Rory Jubber. While passport renewal applications […]

For South Africans returning home from abroad during the current pandemic, it is now possible to apply to self-quarantine at home during the 14-day mandatory quarantine period. (See self-isolation application form at bottom of page.) Previously South Africans returning to SA had to remain in state-assigned quarantine facilities. Now it’s possible to apply to spend […]

South Africa’s Department of Home Affairs has announced additional categories of passport applications that will be accepted at DHA offices during lockdown. The categories include applications by SA citizens who need to take up employment abroad, who need to be reunited with their families abroad, who need to take up permanent residency abroad or who […]

Children born in other countries are entitled to South African citizenship as long as one parent is South African, the Constitutional Court has ruled. A seven-year legal battle is finally over and the court has ruled that the Department of Home Affairs must immediately recognise as citizens Yamika Chisuse, born in 1989 in Malawi; Martin […]